KLSE Market

Palm futures to fall on dampened demand
Crude palm oil (CPO) futures prices on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives are likely to be lower next week on concerns that the lingering European debt crisis will dampen demand growth from major economies, dealers said. Interband Group of Companies senior p…..

KL tin market may move upwards
The tin price on the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market (KLTM) will likely be higher next week on buying interest from European buyers, dealers said. The tin price on the KLTM is expected to hover around US$18,000 per tonne next week, a dealer said, adding i…..

Rubber prices likely to be rangebound
The Malaysian rubber market is likely to be rangebound in cautious trading amid concerns of still weak demand with the lingering European debt crisis, dealers said. Market players, they said, will also look for cues at next week’s US Federal Reser…..

US stocks soar on stimulus hopes
NEW YORK: US stocks surged higher for a second straight day Friday, pushing the Dow above 13,000 for the first time since May, on hopes for US and European stimulus to jump-start frail economies.The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 13,075.66, u…..

Bernanke, Geithner response to Libor scandal rings hollow
WASHINGTON: Ben Bernanke heads the most powerful central bank in the world. Yet the Federal Reserve chairman says he was largely powerless to stop what some are calling the biggest financial fraud in history: the systematic manipulation of a key glob…..

JPMorgan creates more management checks and balances
NEW YORK: JPMorgan Chase & Co Chief Executive Jamie Dimon reshuffled his management team, in a step that analysts see as creating more checks and balances in the upper ranks after the bank suffered from embarrassing trading losses……

Cautious consumers, foreign trade curb US Q2 growth
WASHINGTON: U.S. economic growth slowed in the second quarter as consumers spent at their slowest pace in a year, increasing pressure on the Federal Reserve to do more to bolster the recovery……

Global stocks fly on central bank hopes, euro cuts gains
NEW YORK: Stocks rallied on Friday on expectations the European Central Bank will tackle high borrowing costs hitting Spain and Italy, but the euro pared gains on market uncertainty about the specific action to be taken……

Petronas raises Progress Energy offer after rival bid
Progress Energy Resources Corp said Malaysia’s state oil company Petronas has agreed to raise its offer to buy the Canadian natural gas producer by 8 percent after Progress received an unsolicited proposal from a third party……

Tan Theng Hooi answers your 10 questions
Tan Theng Hooi of Deloitte Malaysia country managing partner answers ………

Up close & personal with Rhoda Yap
Rhoda Yap , BritishIndia CEO gets ……..

Ananda back in spotlight
PETALING JAYA: Reclusive billionaire T. Ananda Krishnan may be raising money for his other businesses abroad by the sale of 375 million shares or a 5% stake in telecommunications network operator Maxis Bhd for an estimated RM2.35bil……

AirAsia acquisition ‘strategic’
PETALING JAYA: AirAsia Bhd’s acquisition of Indonesia’s Batavia Air is a strategic move on the part of the low-cost carrier as it will boost market share and enhance its route network, according to analysts……

Kim Loong set to launch health product after 8 years of R&D
PETALING JAYA: Plantation group Kim Loong Resources Bhd expects to launch its tocotrienol health supplement brand called E-life Gold by year-end……

Bankers: Malaysia not shielded from contagion risk
KUALA LUMPUR: The idea that Malaysia is shielded from the contagion risk arising from the distressed Western economies is a myth, according to banking executives……

M&As can help steel makers better tap strong demand in Asean
SHAH ALAM: Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) are needed among Malaysian steel manufacturers to better tap the strong demand for steel products in the Asean region, said Malaysian Iron and Steel Industry Federation (Misif) president Datuk Soh Thian Lai……

MAHB posts higher Q2 earnings on improved passenger traffic
SEPANG: Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) posted a higher net profit of RM100.69mil for the second quarter ended June 30 against RM91.1mil a year ago……

Integrax signs 28-year handling services deal with TNB
PETALING JAYA: Integrax Bhd subsidiary has sealed a 28-year contract with Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) to provide handling services for the importation of coal for the latter’s power plant in Telok Rubiah, Perak……

H&L closes flood-hit plant in Thailand
PETALING JAYA: Precision engineering product maker Kumpulan H&L High-Tech Bhd’s 70%-owned subsidiary in Thailand, H&L High-Tech Mould (Thailand) Co Ltd, has ceased its manufacturing operations and will close its plant effective July 31……

Pestech signs MoU with Laos state firm
PETALING JAYA: Pestech International Bhd has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Electrical Construction and Installation, a Laos state-owned company, to explore the possibility of working together on electrical power and energy business …..

MBAM urges Govt to check on possibility of higher cement prices
PETALING JAYA: Master Builders Association Malaysia (MBAM) is urging the Government to look into the possibility of an increase in cement prices which it expects will have an impact on local construction players……

More jobs for SapuraKencana
PETALING JAYA: Analysts expects SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd to secure more jobs after it won contracts from Murphy Sarawak Oil Co Ltd……

AIFM to manage new global sukuk fund
KUALA LUMPUR: AmIslamic Funds Management (AIFM) is the investment manager of Malaysia’s new global sukuk fund, AmDynamic Sukuk……

Ho Hup gets extension from Bursa
KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd has granted Ho Hup Construction Co Bhd an extension up to Sept 30 to submit its revised proposed regularisation plan……

Options aplenty soon for banking and finance talents abroad
KUALA LUMPUR: Employees in the financial sector can be more mobile in their job pursuits in the coming years, going beyond the domestic banking industry by riding on the expansion of banks around the Asean region……

Need to build up confidence to promote Islamic finance globally
KUALA LUMPUR: Although Malaysia has one of the most established and regulated Islamic finance frameworks, local financial institutions need to build up confidence to promote it in the global Islamic finance market……

KLIFD set to reshape Malaysia’s financial landscape
KUALA LUMPUR: The Kuala Lumpur International Financial District (KLIFD) is set to reshape Malaysia’s financial landscape in the region, as well as on the global front, with state-of-the-art infrastructure and technology……

Local pepper prices hit by Indonesian selling pressure
KUCHING: Domestic pepper prices have weakened in recent weeks, falling to their lowest levels this year due to selling pressure from Indonesian farmers……

Trade with China set to soar
PETALING JAYA: The International Trade and Industry Ministry has forecast that the Malaysia-China bilateral trade for 2012 will easily exceed the US$54.5bil (RM172.3bil) recorded last year……

Financial mistakes students make
Lack of experience can lead to poor cash management…..

Good investing prospects in emerging markets
LONG equities. Long commodities. Asean is the next big story. Europe is going to come out better after this whole mess – these are the key messages from emerging market’s most influential investor, Dr Mark Mobius……

More volatile market seen for H2
THE local stock market appears to be set for more volatility in the second half of this year as the melange of weak overseas economic conditions and looming local polls continues to have a huge impact on investor and trader sentiment……

Putting the steel in Megasteel
LION Group is finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel in efforts to turn around its loss-making unit – hot-rolled coils (HRC) producer Megasteel Sdn Bhd, which was badly affected by the influx of cheaper imported products into the country…..

BookXcess a runaway success
Simple formulahelps couple’sbook businessexpand by leapsand bounds…..

Charging ahead … ramping up the BookXcess franchise
Andrew Yap and Jacqueline Ng talk about their plans for the future:…..

The grab for Greater Sunrise
IT’S a typical evening in the world’s second newest country, as a group of uniformed cleaners scan a beach with their wooden spikes to pick up litter. The beach is already relatively clean, especially considering its part of the country’s capital……

The spectre of food inflation
The writing is on the wall: Food inflation will likely rear its ugly head again soon, and countries in Asia, including Malaysia, will also be feeling the heat……

High demand for high rise
Kuching-based Lee Onn ConstructionCompany embarks on more highriseapartments and condominiums……

A leader among residents
Chang Kim Loong advises on how to choosea council leader in your home community……

Affordability issue in buying property
AFFORDABILITY is expected to continue to be a burning issue this year and next until affordable housing gets off the ground in a big way. …..

Krugman: Spend yourway out of trouble
Nobel Prize winnerPaul Krugmanplots a path outof the presentdepression ……

Snapshots
Compiled by THEAN LEE CHENG…..

Ukraine eyes stronger trade relationship with Malaysia
FRESH from its success in co-hosting the Euro 2012 football tournament, Ukraine is setting its sights on Malaysia for a stronger trade relationship……

Breakdown suggests uptrend is over
TREND ANALYSIS BY K.M.LEE…..

Spikes Asia creative festival reveals jury line-up
The Spikes Asia Festival of Creativity, the regional creative advertising and communications festival for Asia-Pacific, has announced several jury presidents for this year’s event which will take place in Singapore from Sept 16-18……

First step – brand positioning
STARTING a business is never easy. One needs to be pretty savvy to ensure quick returns on investment and that the venture will be successful, if not, at least sustainable……

Prudential banks on product innovation
Prudential Assurance Malaysia Bhd (PAMB), one of the top two insurers in the country, is banking on product innovation and on its promise to deliver based on trust as a driving force to put the company ahead of its competitors……

Dealing with a rare situation
Errol Oh poses the question of what happens when a director faces insidertrading charges……

Making tough decisions as an entrepreneur
Tan Thiam Hock speaks of how he madea tough decision as an entrepreneur in asurprise appearance……

Olympics and business
P. Gunasegaram says the economic benefitsof hosting the Olympic Games have beenrather dubious at best……

Flip-flopping the future away
Shireen Muhiudeen does not believe in flipflopping of tax policies as it will give rise to complicated problems……

The F&N saga
I FEEL nostalgic this week. On July 18, the OCBC Group in Singapore sold to Thai Beverage Ltd (ThaiBev) its significant interest in the F&N group of companies, Fraser & Neave Ltd (listed on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd, SGX)……

CNOOC bid faces US hurdle
WASHINGTON: The US government should block a bid by China’s state oil company CNOOC for Canadian oil company Nexen until China’s government provides fair access for US companies that want to invest in China, a top Democratic senator plans to tell Tre…..

Smartphones power record Samsung profit
SEOUL: Samsung Electronics Co, the world’s top technology firm by revenue, reported a record operating profit of US$5.9bil for the June quarter, as rampant Galaxy S handset sales helped stretch its lead over Apple Inc……

Facebook revenue growth skids
SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook Inc reported a drastic slowdown in revenue growth and offered no financial forecasts to ease worries over the prospects for boosting advertising in its first earnings report as a public company, sending its shares to a record …..

US to pile more pressure on EU in airline row
WASHINGTON: Washington will ratchet up the pressure next week to find a global solution to a bitter row over an European Union (EU) law that makes airlines that use European airports pay for carbon emissions……

Geithner: New York Fed did not condone misreporting of Libor
WASHINGTON: US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the Federal Reserve Bank of New York did not encourage banks to misrepresent their borrowing costs when setting the key benchmark interest rate Libor when he was the head of the regional Fed ban…..

Barclays reveals new probe, more US Libor lawsuits
LONDON: Barclays Plc revealed a new regulatory probe and more US lawsuits, making it harder for the British lender to repair the damage to its reputation caused by its role in the interest-rate rigging scandal shaking banks……